Saudi Arabia and France announced 21 agreements and memoranda of understanding during Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s visit to Paris, led by plans for a €6 billion ($7 billion) Saudi-backed entertainment development near the French capital and agreements spanning energy, transport, artificial intelligence, defence and tourism.
The package, unveiled as the crown prince and French President Emmanuel Macron convened the first Saudi-French Strategic Partnership Council, begins to put commercial projects behind the framework established during Macron’s December 2024 visit to Riyadh. But the 21 documents vary substantially in maturity: they include contracts, proposed investments, financing frameworks, government agreements and preliminary MoUs.
That distinction matters. Their stated values cannot be added together as a single measure of new investment, and several projects still lack final capital commitments, implementation schedules or disclosed commercial terms.
Saudi data nevertheless show a relationship already expanding rapidly. The stock of French direct investment in Saudi Arabia reached SAR63.9 billion (€16.3 billion) in 2024, more than twice its 2021 level, while bilateral trade reached SAR44.2 billion in 2025. French investors held 651 investment licences across 18 sectors, and 39 French companies had established regional headquarters in the kingdom.
€6bn Project Would Shift Saudi Capital Into France
The largest investment plan announced during the visit came from Qiddiya Investment Company, which intends to develop a €6 billion entertainment and leisure complex at Cergy-Pontoise, northwest of Paris.
The Élysée said the development could comprise three theme parks and create about 22,000 jobs. French reporting said one park could focus on Japanese manga and anime, potentially including Dragon Ball.
The figures remain projections. No firm opening date or detailed investment schedule has been disclosed, meaning the €6 billion should be treated as planned multiyear investment rather than committed immediate expenditure. The 22,000 jobs figure is similarly a project estimate rather than employment already created.
If implemented at the announced scale, however, the development would mark an important change in bilateral capital flows. Saudi-French economic ties have historically been characterised more heavily by French companies investing and selling into Saudi Arabia; Qiddiya would place substantial Saudi capital directly into the French economy.
Aramco Agreements Carry Potential $3.7bn Value
Saudi Aramco announced agreements and an MoU with French companies carrying a potential combined value exceeding $3.7 billion, covering drilling equipment, oil-country tubular goods and digital technology.
Aramco Digital also established a framework for potential cooperation in industrial AI and digital- and virtual-twin technologies.
The company’s wording is important: the $3.7 billion represents potential combined value, not expenditure already committed or revenue immediately booked by the French counterparties.
The agreements nevertheless show that hydrocarbons remain an important commercial foundation beneath the widening Saudi-French relationship, even as both governments promote renewable energy, hydrogen and advanced technology.
Riyadh Metro and Jeddah Port Move Beyond MoUs
Transport produced some of the more concrete commercial announcements.
Alstom secured a €500 million contract for additional trains for Riyadh Metro Lines 3 and 6 and agreed to support investment in a Saudi assembly facility for trains intended for the planned Line 7.
The assembly plan carries significance beyond the train order. Riyadh is increasingly seeking to convert foreign procurement into domestic manufacturing, skills and supply-chain capacity, although the investment value, production schedule and planned localisation rate for the facility have not been disclosed.
In maritime infrastructure, CMA CGM and Red Sea Gateway Terminal agreed on a €434 million investment to develop Terminal 4 at Jeddah Islamic Port, targeting an annual handling capacity of about 2.6 million twenty-foot equivalent units.
The project strengthens Saudi Arabia’s logistics strategy as it seeks a larger role in trade flows connecting Asia, Africa and Europe.
Mistral and HUMAIN Push AI Partnership Into Commercial Arena
French AI developer Mistral AI and Saudi Arabia’s HUMAIN agreed on a long-term framework covering computing capacity, joint AI-model development and commercialisation.
The governments separately signed an agreement covering artificial intelligence, quantum technologies and other emerging technologies.
The commercial logic is complementary. France is attempting to develop a European AI ecosystem with greater technological sovereignty, while Saudi Arabia can offer capital, energy and large-scale computing infrastructure as it builds its own AI industry.
Important commercial details remain undisclosed, however. Neither the investment value nor committed computing capacity, ownership structure or implementation timetable of the Mistral-HUMAIN cooperation has been publicly specified.
Saudi mining company Maaden and France’s Orano also signed an MoU covering technology development and strategic cooperation. Non disclosure agreement establishes uranium production or a nuclear-fuel project, despite Orano’s position in the nuclear industry.
Up to $8bn Is Financing Capacity — Not New Investment
French-backed financing formed another large component of the announcements, but its headline value requires particular caution.
State-backed Bpifrance Assurance Export agreed a framework providing financing capacity of up to $3 billion for Saudi Energy, while a separate package envisages about $5 billion connected with projects including Riyadh Metro, the Sharaan Hotel in AlUla and railway equipment ahead of Expo 2030 and the 2034 FIFA World Cup.
These figures represent potential financing or credit-support capacity. They should not be reported as $8 billion of French direct investment, nor necessarily as $8 billion of projects reaching financial close during the visit.
Saudia Group, Saudi EXIM Bank and Crédit Agricole CIB separately signed an MoU concerning financing for four Airbus aircraft. The financing value and detailed terms were not disclosed.
AlUla Partnership Extended to 2035
Saudi Arabia and France extended their intergovernmental cooperation over AlUla to 2035, broadening collaboration across tourism, heritage, culture, environmental protection and economic development.
The agreement builds on cooperation dating to 2018 and therefore represents an extension of an established bilateral programme rather than an entirely new investment project.
Atout France and Expo 2030 Riyadh Company also agreed to exchange expertise ahead of Expo 2030, while French water company SAUR and Saudi Arabia’s Nesma & Partners agreed to form a joint venture targeting two wastewater-treatment plants associated with a leisure development.
The prospective water contract is valued at about $150 million, although final award and implementation details have not been disclosed.
Together, these projects point to the secondary infrastructure requirements generated by Saudi Arabia’s tourism and entertainment expansion — from water and transport to hospitality, waste treatment and digital services.
Defence Agreement Broadens Cooperation, but No Major Arms Sale
France and Saudi Arabia signed a letter of intent strengthening defence cooperation, including defence capabilities, cybersecurity, AI, emerging technologies, training and military education.
No major new French weapons procurement contract was publicly announced as part of the Paris package.
That limits the case for describing the visit primarily as a defence-deal summit. The agreement instead points towards deeper technological, training and industrial cooperation as Saudi Arabia seeks to localise a larger share of defence spending.
Security and Investment Increasingly Intertwined
Macron and Mohammed bin Salman also discussed Iran and regional security, condemned attacks on shipping and called for normal navigation through the Strait of Hormuz.
The security discussions have direct economic implications. Disruption to Gulf maritime routes can raise freight and insurance costs, interrupt energy exports and weaken supply-chain predictability. That makes maritime security increasingly relevant to the same investment agenda covering Saudi ports, logistics, energy and European trade links.
The bilateral relationship is consequently widening beyond the traditional combination of energy, defence and diplomacy into infrastructure, AI, advanced manufacturing, tourism and international investment.
The Test Comes After the Signatures
The Paris visit produced a substantial pipeline, but 21 signed documents do not equate to 21 completed investments.
The announcements range from a firm €500 million Alstom contract to Qiddiya’s proposed €6 billion multi year investment, Aramco agreements carrying potential value, financing frameworks that have not necessarily been drawn, and MoUs whose commercial terms remain undisclosed.
That difference in project maturity is central to assessing the economic impact.
The strongest evidence of a deeper partnership lies not in the aggregate number of agreements but in its changing structure: French companies are increasingly being encouraged to manufacture, assemble, finance and transfer technology inside Saudi Arabia, while Saudi capital is beginning to target large investments inside France.
The next test is measurable: whether the Paris MoUs reach final investment decisions, whether financing frameworks are drawn and projects enter construction, and whether Saudi investment in France begins to narrow the imbalance with France’s much larger industrial exposure to the kingdom.
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